The eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou has been one of the country's most popular tourist hotspots over the years. While the Yangtze River Delta metropolis is also the birthplace of Chinese internet giants like Alibaba, a growing number of domestic and global entrepreneurs have followed in their footsteps to settle in the city, trying to find their own golden opportunities. CGTN's Wu Lei has more.

An old Chinese saying holds that "up there is heaven, down here are Suzhou and Hangzhou." Wu Conghua and his family are visiting beautiful Hangzhou for the fifth time. He says no trip there is complete without seeing West Lake.

WU CONGHUA TOURIST "What impresses me most about Hangzhou is that it is a tourist destination first, and then it is a business hub with many internet companies and small businesses."

According to data, Hangzhou welcomed over 184 million travelers in 2018, a 13% rise over the year before. Its internet reputation is thanks in large part to Alibaba. Founder Jack Ma launched the company from here in his hometown in 1999. In the two decades since, the company has grown from a small start-up to a global internet powerhouse, with businesses ranging from e-commerce to logistics and cloud computing.

JACK MA, FOUNDER ALIBABA GROUP "People are asking me why Alibaba is in Hangzhou, and our city would like entrepreneurship, we like people from nothing building it up, so I think we got great talents, we got good environment, and we got the great culture fighting for the future."

Since the 1990s, China's internet industries have flourished across the country. Internet companies like Alibaba, Netease, Tencent, and Baidu have brought enormous changes to Chinese consumers. The latest report from the China Internet Network Information Center shows the number of Chinese internet users has reached over 820 million, and most of them are mobile internet users.

WU LEI HANGZHOU "The natural beauty, business environment and lifestyle are some key factors for entrepreneurs here. With the success of Internet giants like Alibaba and NetEase in Hangzhou, a growing number of domestic and foreign entrepreneurs have followed in their footsteps and tried to make their own success."

Julien Reincke from Holland is one of them, he and his colleagues have been promoting their data-based internet business in the city for the past year.

JULIEN REINCKE, GENERAL MANAGER DASHMOTE CHINA "But also for small companies, there are a lot of opportunities, because there is an environment, ecosystem where you can easily start a business, start small, and then grow from there, so that is what I really like about Hangzhou."

The internet has been highly integrated with every aspect of people's lives. From public services to private businesses, most internet companies in Hangzhou are applying their technologies to make people's lives more comfortable and enjoyable. WL, CGTN, HZ.